How Jesus Calls His People (John 1:35-51) | 01/25/26
Sermon Manuscript
We are finishing up John 1 this morning with Jesus calling his first disciples. Either five or six are called depending on how you read the text. John is writing this as an historical account, but he’s also doing something else as well. He’s showing us a pattern. The pattern of how Jesus calls His people. John is giving us permission to read this as true history, but written in a way that is meant to shape us.
In chapter 20, John tells us that These things are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God - John 20:31. That means that John is selective, not exhaustive. That he includes things that are formative, not merely factual. He wants us to see ourselves in this story.
There is a clear pattern of testimony, curiosity, invitation, encounter, witness, and deeper revelation that is repeated four times in this chapter. You see it in John the Baptist speaking to Andrew, Andrew speaking to Peter, Jesus, speaking to Philip, and Philip speaking to Nathanael. John could have said Jesus called some disciples. But instead, he slows the story down and shows us the same movement again and again and again and again. And he does it later with Nicodemus, the Samaritan Woman, and the man who was born blind.
This is not just a story about who was called or how they were called. It is a story showing how Jesus calls. John isn’t just telling us what happened back then, he’s showing us how Jesus still works now. This isn’t just an origin story, it’s a pattern. So that is how I want to look at it. I want us to see this morning what is always true about the way Jesus calls His people and why it matters. The Christian life does not begin with confidence or clarity, it begins with Jesus’ calling. I want to pull out six things that are true about how Jesus calls His people.
- Jesus calls people through ordinary testimony, not spectacle 35-37, 40-41
Notice how the first call begins with John the Baptist saying to Andrew, “Behold, the Lamb of God.” Both Clark and I have already explained what that means so I won’t belabor the point, but simply say that one ordinary man is telling another about the One who is Extraordinary. Then, Andrew does the same thing with Peter. He tells Peter, “We have found the Messiah.”
Now, does God sometimes do extraordinary things to bring people into the Kingdom? Yes! I know of a middle eastern man who was traveling and ended up in a room where the gospel was being shared, but it was in English and he didn’t understand. So someone leaned up from behind him and offered to translate. The gospel message was translated and he was very interested and at the end of the message, this man turned around to thank the translator and behind him was a wall. Not only was there no one there, but there was no place for a person. But, that still doesn’t break the pattern of John because an ordinary man was telling others about Jesus. I know people who have dreams about Jesus, but those dreams generally lead them to find someone to tell them about Jesus.
Now, are there some unique outliers where people come to faith totally on their own? Yes. But the normal pattern throughout history is that God uses ordinary faithfulness. Most people come to Jesus not through dramatic experiences, but through the quiet witness of someone they trust. How many of you in this room came to faith through this ordinary pattern? Exactly.
And do you know what that means? You don’t have to be some great theologian, incredible orator, or lights out debater to be useful in the Kingdom. We just share our stories of how we found the Messiah and let God do the rest. We are the way God has ordained to spread the gospel around the world.
- Jesus calls people with an invitation, not a demand 38-39, 46
Jesus’ first words in the Gospel are a question: “What are you seeking?” Jesus doesn’t just come out hell, fire, and brimstone. He doesn’t begin a long apologetic about Himself. He asks them a question that gets to their hearts. Then, Philip does the same thing. He uses Jesus’ method and invites Nathanael the same way: Come and see.
Our very first year in Italy, before Angela and I were ever dating, we decided to go on campus that day and the goal was to share the gospel using the Four Laws gospel tract. And Angela is the most faithful, rule following person I know. So she walked up to this young student at the University of Pisa and began to share the gospel. And with each flip of the page, the student took a step back…and Angela took a step forward. So by page three the student is literally walking backwards as Angela is chasing her sharing the gospel with her and it was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.
Now, I’m not against gospel tracts. I came to faith through one. But, through a friend walking me through it in the context of a new, but safe friendship. The normal pattern isn’t sharing truth to people as they walk away, but drawing them in through invitation and curiosity. The normal pattern is that Jesus draws people in through our emotional presence and proximity before they fully understand.
And if you are here today and you are not a Christian, this is how I hope you experience us. We want to be a safe, loving community where you can ask the hard and even vulnerable questions. And I want you to see in this passage that Jesus isn’t threatened by questions, hesitation, or curiosity. Quite the opposite. He invites it. His posture isn’t one of condescension and condemnation, but curiosity and love.
- Jesus calls people before they are ready 42,43
Jesus changes Simon’s name to Peter before he is changed. Philip is called without any explanation. Nathanael is known by Jesus before he ever believed.
We have this idea in modern Western culture that we need to go out and share the gospel with people on our own before we bring them into our community, but that is an historical anomaly. I’ll stick with my Italy theme this morning. We lived in Italy for five years and every single Italian that gave their lives to Jesus was a part of our community before they ever believed. That is more the normal pattern. Jesus doesn’t wait for maturity, clarity, or consistency before He calls. He creates those things over time. This shows us that grace always precedes growth. So we shouldn’t have the expectation that someone hits some moral or spiritual benchmark before we invite them into our lives and communities. Now, of course no one is going to be baptized or become a member of the church before they put their faith in Jesus, but that doesn’t mean we should exclude them from our community before they do. In fact, our community could be the very thing God uses to bring them to faith. I love the way James Soper leads us in communion by saying, “If you have not put your faith in Jesus, while this church IS for you, this table is not, yet.”
And this is really good news in so many ways. If you have friends, parents, or children that seem so far away, no one is too far from Jesus’ call. They don’t have to hit some moral benchmark before Jesus is willing to call them. And it is often those very same self-destructive decisions that Jesus uses to help them see their need for Him.
And if you are here today and you are not a believer, I want you to hear this as good news too. There is this temptation to feel ready before you give your life to Jesus. To have full understanding and full willingness. That’s not the pattern. You don’t get clean and then go to the shower. The shower makes you clean. In the same way, you don’t gain full understanding and full willingness and then go to Jesus. You go to Jesus and He gives you understanding and willingness.
- There are no failed calls
Notice in this passage that there are no failed calls. Everyone who Jesus personally addresses or decisively reveals Himself to respond affirmatively. Andrew and the unnamed disciple follow and stay. Simon receives a new name without resistance. Philip is directly called and immediately follows. And Nathanael’s skepticism gives way instantly to confession once Jesus makes Himself known to him. John’s point is not that faith is instant or doubt-free, but that Jesus’ self-revelation is effective. When He makes Himself known, people move toward Him rather than away from Him. The chapter shows us not the end of belief, but the beginning. A faith that will still need to grow, be tested, and refined over time.
And clearly this is what John believes because he says in John 6 “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” - John 6:37 and “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” - John 6:44 and John 10 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” - John 10:27
Some people would thoughtfully ask at this point, “But what about the people later in John who hear Jesus, but don’t believe?” Which is a very good question. Exposure to Jesus is not the same as self-revelation by Jesus. Everyone who Jesus personally addresses and reveals Himself to responds. Sometimes with curiosity, sometimes with questions, but always with movement toward Him.
Now, here is another reasonable question that I often hear. “Well, if God is doing the calling, why would we need to share our faith?” How can you tell us that God is the One who calls and that everyone He calls responds AND that we have a real role in that process to share the gospel? Think about it like this. What if you bought a field to farm and when the previous owner hands you the deed to the field, the last thing he says is, “Oh, and by the way, some of the field grows like crazy and no matter what you do, some parts will never grow.” And he walks away. What would you do? You would sow your seeds in every inch of that field because you know that there are places that are guaranteed to grow.
In the same way, we know that Jesus is calling people through His Holy Spirit to Himself. We don’t know who, but we know He is calling. So, we share our faith prolifically to find them. It doesn’t mean that people are robots. It means that people are sinful and that Jesus is overcoming that sin and that we get to be a part of it. And our decisions are real decisions. I love how Tim Keller once said, “God has sovereignly ordained that we would freely choose Him.”
- Jesus’ call is not abstract, but personal 47-49
It’s funny how no matter how many times you have read a passage, there are always new things to be found. This happened for me this week in verses 47 and 48. Jesus knew Nathanael at a deep level before Nathanel they ever even spoke. 47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, yan Israelite indeed, zin whom there is no deceit!”48 Nathanael said to him, “How ado you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”
This isn’t flattery and it’s not some vague spirituality. Jesus is speaking specifically, personally, and accurately about Nathanael. Jesus doesn’t say, “I know where you are from.” “I know your background.” Or “I know your reputation.” He speaks to Nathanael’s inner life. There is integrity, sincerity, and genuineness. In short, He sees Nathanael.
When Nathanael asks “How do you know me?,” he’s asking a question that exposes a deep human fear and longing. Can we be really known? Is it really safe to be seen? If I am really known, will I feel exposed or accepted? We tend to hide because we assume being fully known will lead to rejection.
John, though, shows us the opposite: being known by Jesus comes with full acceptance because He loves us and makes us acceptable. We all have dark times when we think Jesus would never call me. I’m too disobedient, too dark, too wayward. Or we doubt if Jesus did call us in the first place because surely He would not have called me if He knew I would think or do this or that. But, what we see is that Jesus knows us before He calls us. He doesn’t make mistakes. He fully knows us AND willingly invites us. Jesus’ call is personal because his knowledge is personal. He does not invite us as strangers, but as people He already sees and loves.
The very essence of the Christian gospel is that we are fully known by God and fully accepted. Jesus gave his life on the cross to secure this acceptance because He loves us. Jesus died for all our past, present, and future sins…that He knew we would commit. And He gave us his perfect moral record so we could be both fully known and fully accepted.
One of Tim Keller’s most famous quotes gets to the core of this. He said, “To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.”
We tend to hide because we assume being fully known will lead to rejection. But John is showing us the opposite. Being known by Jesus becomes the foundation for our faith. And the more we experience being known and accepted by Him, the more willing we are to open ourselves to others who have also experienced this. It’s one thing to be in a community group where good theology is being taught, but it is a whole other thing to be in a community group where vulnerable hopes, wounds, and fears are being shared. Where tears and hugs go together. Where we can share and experience God’s love and acceptance with each other.
- Jesus’ call never stops
Jesus’ call isn’t just from lost to saved. Some people think Jesus’ call is like signing a marriage license. Once it’s done, it’s done. But no one thinks that’s what marriage is. The wedding begins a lifelong process of knowing and being known. In the same way, Jesus doesn’t just call us into salvation, but into an ever-deepening relationship that lasts forever.
This is why in verse 50 after Nathanael recognized that Jesus is the Son of God, the King of Israel, Jesus said to him, “You will see greater things than these.” The Christian life is a journey into deeper revelation and love, not just a one-time decision. It is a journey that moves us toward greater trust, deeper knowledge, and fuller communion with God and each other.
So, how do you know if Jesus is calling you? Do you want to be called? That desire itself is not something we generate…and it is evidence that Jesus is already at work. And if that is you, whether you have yet to put your faith in Jesus or if you have walked with Jesus for decades, you are invited into something more rich and satisfying than you are currently experiencing.
John 1 shows us that Jesus’ call is not loud, flashy, or impersonal. It is ordinary, invitational, gracious, effective, deeply personal…and it never stops. Some of you might hear that and realize you’ve reduced Christianity to some decision you made in the past. But Jesus is still calling you…into deeper trust, deeper honesty, deeper communion.
Others hear this and think, “Surely not me.” And John says, actually, this is exactly how it works. Jesus calls people before they’re ready, because he already knows them. The question is not whether Jesus is willing to call you. The question is whether you are willing to keep responding.
And the good news is this: the One who calls you is the One who already sees you, already knows you, and has already given himself for you.
